Ischemic Stroke in Young Asian Women: Risk Factors, Subtypes and Outcome

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The objective of our study was to describe risk factors, mechanisms and outcome of young Asian women with ischemic stroke. METHODS: Twelve tertiary-care centers in 8 Asian countries participated. Women aged 15-45 years were included if they had an ischemic stroke supported by neuroimaging. Data on age, risk factor history, stroke mechanism and discharge status were collected. RESULTS: A total of 958 subjects were included, their mean age was 34 years. Large-vessel thrombosis comprised 24%, cerebral venous thrombosis 21%, cardioembolism 19% and small-vessel thrombosis 15%. The stroke risk factors included hypertension (29%), diabetes (14%), pregnancy (11%), valvular heart disease (10%) and cigarette smoking (3%). Anemia was found in 42%, and mortality was 4%; at discharge, 17% had modified Rankin score (mRS) >4 and 83% mRS 0-3. CONCLUSION: Unlike among Caucasians, large-vessel thrombosis, cerebral venous thrombosis and cardioembolism are common among young Asian women with stroke. A high proportion are pregnancy-related. More studies are needed.